Product description

For decades, the USSR had dominated world chess. Evidence, according to Moscow, of the superiority of the Soviet system. But in 1972 along came the American, Bobby Fischer - insolent, arrogant, abusive, vain, greedy, vulgar, bigoted, paranoid and obsessive. And apparently unstoppable ...'It was thanks to Fischer's greed and weirdness that the Reykjavik match was such a compelling event ...A fascinating story, admirably told.' Daily Telegraph 'Fischer seemed to thrive on complaints, tantrums and ultimatums, treating the exercise as a game, not of chess but of Chicken ...It is precisely these factors that make for such a gripping read.' Sunday Times 'The most famous chess match of all time reconstructed in a style as compelling as that of a thriller.' Irish Times 'Pure drama ...The most cool, ruthless and rational player the world has ever seen.' Independent

Author information

David Edmonds is a senior research associate at Oxford's Uehiro Centre for Practical Ethics and a multi-award winning radio producer for the BBC World Service. He co-founded the popular philosophy podcast Philosophy Bites with Nigel Warburton and has published several titles associated with that podcast, along with his works co-authored with John Eidinow. John Eidinow was a presenter/interviewer for BBC Radio 4 and World Service radio, working in news and current affairs and making documentaries on historical and contemporary issues. He has published three books with his co-author David Edmonds, and one - Another Day, alone. Their co-authored books are the best-selling Wittgenstein's Poker (2001), which was short-listed for the Guardian First Book Award and translated into over thirty languages, Bobby Fischer Goes to War (2004), which was longlisted for the Samuel Johnson prize. Their most recent work is Rousseau's Dog (2006).